NOTE: THIS POST WAS WRITTEN FOR IPHONE IOS 4.x. THIS POST MAY NOT NECESSARILY HELP YOU IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH VERSION 6.x AND LATER.
Here is the solution to get Internet tethering (sharing) back if you are suddenly missing Personal Hotspot with iPhone’s iOS 4.3.5 upgrade.
My post about tethering the iPhone Internet connection with the iPad was one of the most popular until Personal Hotspot was introduced in iOS 4.3. I thought it was the end of the problem with tethering. Very short-lived though as iPhone allows the carrier to disable Personal Hotspot. A friend of mine who is on Go Mobile Malta lost his Personal Hotspot function when he upgraded to iOS 4.3.5.
No problem.. this is how we sorted it out! The following works and gets Personal Hotspot and re-enables Internet tethering if your carrier stops it.
1. Take note of your cellular data settings before you proceed. If you don’t complete this step, stop here. The configurations are available at Settings > General > Network > Cellular Data Network.
2. We will now reset these to original factory settings. Settings > General > Reset. Here choose Reset Network Settings. iPhone will ask you to enter your personal code if your passcode lock activated. The phone will reboot to reset. Keep your fingers crossed :)
3. Return to the APN settings screen we talked about in step 1 (Settings > General > Network > Cellular Data Network) and complete all the settings details copied before. You will find that in addition to this there is an Internet Tethering section at the very bottom. Use the same APN key as for the Cellular Data section which you will find at the very top of this screen.
4. Once you have the APN settings complete you need to return to the “Network” screen. Click on the Network back arrow shown below to do this.
5. From the Network screen switch Off the Mobile Data and then switch it On again. You may not need this step but sometimes it helps to kind of reset the data connection with your carrier.
After you have completed the above you will find that there is a Personal Hotspot option in the Settings screen.
And Hey Presto! Enjoy using your mobile Internet connection with other devices like iPad, Macbook or your other laptop while you’re on the go. You can even share your iPhone’s Internet with friends over WiFi or Bluetooth.
Will your Kia be tethering iPhone’s internet connection and taking commands through Siri?
Attention:
If this solution has worked for you please share it with others. One more click to tweet this solution or post it on your facebook.
Derrick Pisani 
It works for me thanks much indeed
hey derrik,
i hope you could help me with this problem i’m facing…
i’ve got the neck of what you’re saying but i’m kind of scared to reset my network settings since mine is a gevey sim unlocked iphone 4 running ios 4.3.5
i fear that in case i reset the network settings, my iphone may get locked again, leading me to spend somewhere near $25…
if only you could clear my doubt regarding the same…
thanks in advance :)
hi Siddarth, unfortunately I cannot provide you with an assurance that the phone won’t lock. Never did that. Let me know how you get along…
thanks any ways derrick…
shall give it a try and hit you back..
cheers :)
Hi I have iOS 5.1.1 and tethering is not supported on a broadband only plan with virgin mobile (carrier). I was wondering if there was a way to edit my APN settings to enable the personal hotspot, without jailbreaking the phone. Please be aware that because of my iOS version, I do not have access to APN settings and they are preloaded from this APN application from website unlockit.co.nz. Please help????
Jamine, sorry for a late reply! Did you read this post? I think it answers your questions.
https://derrickpisani.wordpress.com/2011/09/17/missing-personal-hotspot-on-iphone-how-to-enable-internet-tethering-if-your-carrier-disabled-it/
Hi, sorry, the instructions are not accurate for the iOS version I have. When I go to Settings > General > Network >, there is only an ‘on’ and ‘off’ option for Cellular Data Network. I cannot actually edit any settings there. Also, APN settings on this iOS are modified by downloading an APN application from “unlockit.co.nz” which only have premade APN settings that I can load. There doesnt seem to be any way to modify my own APN settings on this iOS – quite restricting! which is what Apple is so well known for.
The current IOS version has blocked out the screen mentioned in my post. Unlockit will give you a pre-made profile. But did you try going to Settings > General then scroll down to ‘Profile: APN Carrier Settings’? Does it allow you to edit them there?
I also have no idea which Virgin network you’re on, and so cannot give you the correct settings to input. If you’re from the US, you can visit this website and try guess some settings by looking at what’s good for other smartphones:
http://virginmobile.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2423/~/what-are-the-generic-virgin-mobile-settings-for-mms,-wap-or-internet%3F
I went to Settings > General and scrolled down to ‘Profile: APN Carrier Settings’. It only lets me view and remove the settings. I cannot modifiy. It is currently using ‘VirginBroadband’ name and no username. I am from Australia.
I still don`t see the Personal Hotspot option after doing everything like mentioned above :(
sorry alexander… can’t see what’s happening your end. but it’s worked for a number of other ppl. can be that with the new version of IOS you need to find a workaround. let us know if you manage. thanks!
WOW so simple and YESSSS it works – even with and iPhone4 running iOS6 in NL (provider RaboMobiel/KPN) Thank you so much Derrick
thanks :)